National

When British dance instructor Scott Rogers relocated to the United States after being acquitted of charges that he had conducted himself inappropriately with an underage teen, and started a career as a local television personality, the transition marked a fresh start. But Rogers' life was cut short by a gunshot to the head -- and authorities say that suspected triggerman Matthew Hodgkinson, Rogers' son-in-law, may also have been the older man's lover.

Multiple news sources reported on the shooting death, and on the apparently sordid backdrop against which the killing unfolded. News reports also suggested that Hodgkinson was planning to commit suicide after killing Rogers, who died at the age of 52: The 36-year-old son-in-law turned the gun on himself, and is listed as being in critical condition, the New York Daily News reported on Aug. 31.

The New York Daily News drew on a story from Baton Rouge local news channel WAFB, which reported that an autopsy on Rogers confirmed he died from a single bullet to the head.

The Advocate reported Aug. 29 on the travails Rogers faced. Although almost no one in the United States knew of his history in England, the shadow of alleged child molestation dating from the 1990s had crept back into Rogers' life.

Rogers lost both his son and a toddler he was adopting to state custody. He also became the focus of an investigation into whether he had falsified documents to obtain American naturalization. The paperwork involved in the adoption was also called into question.

Sheriff Brett Stassi told the media that Hodgkinson had been a student at the dance school Rogers ran in England. The two became lovers, according to the sheriff, and Rogers set Hodgkinson up with his own daughter, allegedly to secure legal residence in the United States.

A second, unidentified younger man came forward on a radio program after the shooting, and claimed "that both he and Hodgkinson were sexually abused by Rogers as teenagers in England. The men moved to America with him, remaining entangled with Rogers for more than 20 years," The Advocate reported.

Once settled in Baton Rouge, Rogers began a successful new career as a television personality, hosting a show called "Around Town."

According to the New York Daily News, the sheriff's office for Iberville Parish found a suicide note, thought to have been penned by Hodgkinson "They broke our happy loving home. They do not get to take Scott too," the note reportedly said.

UK newspaper the Bury Free Press reported on the story, recalling that Rogers has appeared in court on charges of child sexual abuse in 1993. The same news article said that other parents had taken their children out of Rogers' school, which was described as being like a "cult." Rogers also reportedly hosted sleepovers for the children at his house.